November 28, 2022 02:56pm
Sports enthusiasts at The Portsmouth Academy are celebrating gold after the school has been recognised for its commitment to the development of competition across school and into the community.
The school has been accredited with the School Games Mark Gold award for its outstanding physical education delivery and enrichment activities, with a focus on friendly tournaments.
To qualify for the accolade, the school had to commit to and deliver a criteria set by the scheme.
The Academy is dedicated to providing a comprehensive and inclusive school games offering. From creating positive experiences around physical activity, to facilitating competitions that encourage motivation, The Portsmouth Academy has supported the character development of young people through sport.
Sarah Gomez, the head of Physical Education at the Academy, says achieving gold demonstrates the academy’s commitment to transforming the life chances of many young people through sport competitions.
She said: “The criteria we had to meet to achieve this School Games Mark Gold Award was quite the challenge, but in a positive way as it keeps us driven and determined to be our best when it comes to PE and the provision of competition opportunities.”
“As a school, we needed to engage with a combination of inter-competitions, which provided our students with opportunities to play in tournaments across Portsmouth and Hampshire, as well as smaller intra-competitions that took place within our school. The School Games have a National Finals too which was open to us.”
The criteria The Portsmouth Academy had to meet was published in September 2021. From there, staff and students worked towards achieving the checklist that was reflective of the level of award they wanted to achieve.
Miss Gomez added: “This accreditation proves to our students and prospective students, particularly those with an interest in sport, that we are committed to delivering excellent physical education that’s full of competition opportunities.
“Whether someone is a football enthusiast, or prefers to play cricket or tennis, we are committed to supporting all interests when it comes to sport at the Academy.”
The School Games award is all about making a clear and meaningful difference to the lives of children and young people.
Assheton Woodall, Principal at The Portsmouth Academy, praised staff for their commitment to encouraging students to achieve their aspirations in sport.
He said: “It’s a really exciting time to be someone with an interest and love for sport at The Portsmouth Academy. Sarah and the team have done a fantastic job to achieve this accreditation, that will compliment many other accreditations we have across departments in the school, to support our students in having the best experience at school.”